One More Chance
by Apple Fairy
Summary: He was the real 'Luke'. The friend he had lost so long ago. Guy had missed him. And turns out he wasn't lost. Turns out they could pick up where they left off. Well, only if Asch wanted to as well. GuyAsch friendship, oneshot.


Hajimemashite and Konnichiwa, dearest reader-san! Apple Fairy here! .

Well, here's a Guy and Asch fic for you. It's Guy's POV, if you didn't know. And it takes place on the Tartarus after they leave Luke in Yulia City, if you didn't know that either. I hope you enjoy it! :3

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Tales of the Abyss.

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_One More Chance_

_Story by Apple Fairy_

* * *

_Do you remember those days so long ago?_

_Those hot, summer days where the haze would just swallow you whole?_

_How you'd cry it was much too much._

_I would just smile at you, that sticky, sweet smile you loved so much._

_And then I'd say, it's quite alright._

_Master, dear Master Luke, if I play with you today, will you forget it?_

_Yes, Guy. Yes. As long as you stay a little longer._

_My friend. My servant. Guy, stay with me._

_I love you, my dear friend._

* * *

"Asch."

In the past he would have been Luke. Would have been a small, ambitious boy hoping to please his father, and fiancé, and country, and whoever else he respected. He would have looked back to me and smiled that realizing smile, seeing who it was. The 'Oh! It's Guy.' Smile. He had a different one for everyone. His father he gave one with pride. With Natalia it was one full of love. With his mother, it had been one full of comfort and warmth.

With Guy, his servant, the only boy close to his age in the staff, the only one he could play with and confide to it was one full of…

…Well.

Truthfully, I still don't know to this day. It was different from the others, but I could never exactly pinpoint, could never place a finger onto the right word of what it was. It was something good; I just wasn't sure which good feeling it was.

Well, I'll probably never know. Because this person isn't the Luke of long ago. He wasn't the child who gave specific, special, just-for-that-person smiles to his precious ones. He wasn't the boy so filled with ambition and promise and eagerness he was ready for the world. He also wasn't the spoiled, irresponsible, and immature Luke who was off dreaming whatever dream in Tear's house back in Yulia City.

He was Asch. And all he gave anyone was a frown, and bored or angry (I couldn't really tell) face. No one was special anymore. No one got a special smile. No one mattered.

Because he lost everyone.

I bet that's what he thought.

"What is it, Guy?"

I smiled. Was it forced? Probably. How could I react to that anyway? That face that everyone got, that strict business tone everyone received. I wasn't Guy, his servant, his friend anymore. I wasn't special to him anymore.

I was just Guy; Another face on the team.

It hurt. I quickly shrugged it off though, and walked toward him, next to him, leaning on the railing, watching the water go by, smelling the salt that sang in the air. The ocean…it reminded me of a lot of things if I thought about it deeply. Of Hod and the memories that were born there. Most would think they bought bitter feelings but…they didn't. They bought good, warm feelings. They were good memories. I have no regrets. I have no hatred. Not for Hod. It was a victim, just like everyone else. No, Hod was good. It made me happy. It made me feel safe. Remembering…remembering was good.

I glanced to him. I bet he wouldn't think that.

"So you're the real Luke?"

It was going to be a deep conversation, I could tell. And by the sudden irritance that twitched in his features, I could tell he wasn't looking forward to it.

"Yes. What of it?"

He turned back to the sea. He was easy to read; He didn't want to look at me. I'm not sure why though.

I kept my eyes on him, studying him. What had he become since then? What had Asch (I'd have to get used to that) done with his life? He was a God-general, a two-timing one at that, yeah, I could tell. He hated Luke, the other Luke, and probably Van. Or maybe a violent dislike for Van. I'll have to see.

_But what have you gone through, Asch?_, I wanted to ask him. _What have you faced, what have you seen, how have you fared without us by your side? Did you miss us? Your parents, so full of expectation and love? Your fiancé, so full of care and gentle feelings for you? _

"What about me…?" I whispered. He looked to me, confused. It looked like exasperation. I think any emotion he will express will always have anger attached to it. A shame.

"You say something?" He asked, in a normal tone. It was still devoid of any extra feelings, however. A real shame.

"No; Nothing." I shook my head.

I had a feeling he'd be afraid if I asked too much, went too far, pried too deep. He seemed…sensitive. Easy to scare, emotionally. I'd have to do this delicately. Gently. I had to watch where I stepped. If I stepped too far, he'd immediately lock me out, throw away the key, and forbid me to go any closer or it'd be my head.

However, if I stepped too cautiously, he'd deem me unimportant, a waste of his time, and ignore me for Lorelei knows how long.

I had to be careful. Asch was delicate. Easy to break. Easy to scare.

"What is it that you want already? Spit it out."

_He's getting impatient. I can't stall any longer._ I realized and cleared my throat. He had turned his eyes away from me again, deeming the sea more significant and fascinating than me.

"Do you remember me at all?"

He stiffened. I could see it, his shoulder tensing, even under the layers of clothing. I could feel the ice I was treading across get a little more thinly, but I waited patiently for his response.

"Yes."

_One syllable answer. I need to get more._ I decided, and believed it was safer to walk just a little bit farther.

"Do you remember your parents as well?"

"Of course."

I raised my eyebrows in surprise. There was emotion, even just a little, in that tone he used. He wasn't gone. Luke was still there.

Asch was just trying to lose him.

"Did you miss it? Your life at the manor, I mean."

"What are you getting at? What's with all the questions?"

_Anger. Too close. _I bit my lower lip. I stepped too far. The ice was cracking real fast. Bad. I needed to ease him into comfort, showing I meant no harm.

"…I'm sorry. It's just…going through all that…I mean, all of this came so fast…" I tried to explain. It was true. It was like everything had come at once. Akzeriuth's fall, the journey into the Qliphoth, Luke having been a replica, and this person right next to me being the original, not the enemy, or maybe he was the enemy, I was still trying to figure that out…

Fast. It had all settled into me, and I was finally able to see in front of myself, finally able to slow down, even for a bit. The world turned back to it's easygoing and even self. In the span of two days, I was given a lot to think about, a lot to worry about, and a lot of things to get used to. I was thrown into the chaos, and there was no exit out; the only thing one could do in there was compromise and settle.

But first, I wanted answers. Painful, emotional, brings-bad-memories-for-some-people answers.

Maybe I wanted closure.

Maybe I'm just cruel like that.

I'll probably never know.

"So? Keep your problems to yourself." He snapped. I didn't flinch. Asch wasn't just delicate; He was also easily angered.

_He's like a child._ I thought, lightly, and almost smiled. It's probably better that I didn't.

"…Asch, did you miss me?"

He stiffened once more and turned to me, facing me and my painful questions head on. He had confidence in himself; I'll give him that.

He wasn't smiling that smile he had reserved for me like he did so long ago. No. It was a glare reserved just for those he didn't want to be near, around, or had to deal with. I was a nuisance in his eyes right then; I could tell.

Asch was easy to read.

"Why do you ask that?"

"Because I thought we were friends."

A flash of surprise fell in his eyes, like a shooting star; brief and bright and gone as soon as you realized it was there. He kept his composed face, however, trying to feign anger, neglect, or irritance; I wasn't sure.

(Or maybe he wasn't faking anything. Asch was easy to read sometimes, and other times he was a real puzzle. I've noticed this about him; it's fascinating.)

I turned to him, and looked him straight in the eye, him doing the same. We said nothing, and yet neither of us wanted to back down, nor dare to. Was it a battle of wills? Was it a challenge to see who would back down first? Or maybe, Asch just wanted to prove he wasn't afraid of facing his past, the past that was stolen from him long ago, the past he abandoned afterwards.

He was strong. I'm proud of that.

"…That was a long time ago, Guy."

"Doesn't mean we're not friends anymore."

"…What do you want from me?"

"I want to see if you remember."

"I do. It doesn't mean I still want to…share a relationship with you."

_Ah, _I thought, _so he doesn't want to be friends. _

That was the whole reason I was here. Why I had forced myself here, why I was torturing Asch with memories of the past, why I was having myself tread thin, already cracking ice. That Luke, even if it was seven years, was a different Luke from that one that had a lot to learn when he woke up. That Luke wasn't lost. That day when he came back, when he had 'lost all his memories', I had to bitterly accept that my friend was gone forever, would never remember me, and that I had to start all over again.

Yes, I hated him when I first got there. I hated his blood, his father, and that red hair that was a horrific reminder, even for a bit. I hated his mother, and his name and that stupid smile he gave me, and how he would pronounce my name as if we were on the same level of society.

And then, the months passed and he…he grew on me. I first faked a friendship, but then, soon, before my own eyes, it was becoming real. Genuine.

I hated myself for forgetting my revenge, and hated myself more for still thinking of that.

I would keep myself up at night sometimes, questioning my morals, and sometimes they would shift to one side, then another, but always, through those nights, one thing was constant.

Luke fon Fabre was my friend. Be it fake, or real, he was my friend, and he thought of me as a friend, too.

And, now, here he was, and I was. Standing side by side, I having finally sided with the 'real' side, him however, wishing to forget those days of friendship so long ago.

Funny, how fate's like that.

"Why not?" I was surprised my voice was a whisper. There was no point to it; we were alone on the deck. It seemed oddly appropriate though, it didn't stick out on this scene, so I decided to just leave it there.

He examined my face, for whatever reason, I didn't know. Maybe he was trying to see if continuing or accepting this question was a safe thing to do. He glanced to the side. It was deemed harmless.

"Because I'm not 'Luke' anymore."

"I don't mind being close to 'Asch'."

His cheeks turned red. I wasn't expecting that response. Turns out Asch is full of surprises.

I realized he was getting harder to read as I got deeper into him. As the plot got thicker, the writing got more cryptic. Maybe it was an unintentional defense mechanism, something he had acquired after having given up on us back home. I'll probably never know.

"…How can you say that with a straight face? You're so…ugh, frustrating." He snapped and looked back to the sea. I chuckled and shrugged.

"I guess it's in my nature. Saying what's on your mind…I tend to do things like that."

"It's annoying."

I only smiled, and watched the wind play with his hair, the long red strands flying. I noticed it was a deeper red than Luke's; He had a more 'sunset'-ish color.

"Is that why?" I spoke aloud, a bad habit of mine. (Especially when woman were around…)

"What?" He asked, turning to me, his face more so confused, than bothered.

"Your hair. Is that why you're called 'Asch the Bloody'?"

He raised an eyebrow at me, and fully turned his head from me. It'd be harder to read him now. Was he catching on? I hoped not.

"If you're done here, then go." He ordered.

"Do you hate me?"

His shoulder stiffened once more, and then quickly relaxed once more. He was intentionally on guard now. He was trying his best to hide all reactions, all instincts. He didn't want me to see him respond. He wanted me to leave as soon as I could, wanted me to get as far away as possible. I was going too far, crossing the line as he watched with horror. I was reaching into him, grabbing that heart, and squeezing it, making him feel uncomfortable and angry, or sad, who could truly say.

Either way, the last thing he wanted to see was my face right now, and I knew that.

I knew I had crossed the line, that there was no turning back. I couldn't have Asch's bland recognition any longer. I wasn't another face in the team to him; No, I could never be that anymore. If I did this right, I could be an old friend who was back, who had came back to him, who he accepted with quiet approval.

However, if I did this wrong, I could be a person to avoid, a person who he didn't want to be alone with, a burden who only brought up bad memories.

I had to tread carefully now. The edge was so close now, yet the ice was as thin as could be. Gentle. I had to be really gentle.

"…No."

_A stalled reaction. He's treading carefully too. He's choosing his words carefully. _I analyzed, and continued.

"Then why don't you want to be friends with me?"

I was forced to wait for his response, the only sound was the Tartarus cutting through the ocean, the engines singing and working. I suddenly wondered how the internal workings of the warship toiled, then deemed it unimportant for the moment. That distraction could wait for another time, a more peaceful time where time wasn't an issue, where emotions weren't put to the test, where our hearts weren't hurt.

And how he answered, I decided was the turning point. This question, was the definite thing I had wanted to know all along, what I had been searching for all this time in our conversation, in his slowly-turning-into-puzzling words, in his safe-guarded voice and how it responded. I was looking for something, anything, to see if he had missed me after so long. After ten years ago, having been kidnapped by Van, having somewhere in a point of his life given up on us back home, and having gotten used to his life as a God-general, had he at some point, still retained the feelings, the care, and the friendship for me?

I wanted to know. I _needed _to know. Why?

…Because, dear God, I had missed him. Some days I had wanted him back, my friend, my master, the Luke who had been so ambitious, so full of promise, so full of love. There were nights where I wished he would remember, so the days could go back, so Natalia would have her fiancé back, so the Madam could have her old son back. Change…there had been a change in the manor. With this new 'Luke' we all had to get used to him. And for the first few days, we missed the old master, the old Luke. We grew to care for this new 'Luke' however. I still loved him, too. Don't get me wrong. That 'Luke' who had shown to be so irresponsible, who had grown up pampered due to everyone's fault, and who had a lot of things to worry about, was still my friend as well. I'm a bit disappointed in him, I'll admit that. What he did, blaming it on everything else was, to say it lightly, ridiculous.

But I still love him. I believe he can grow up too. That's what everyone had to get anyway, when they're left with nothing after messing up. When they're alone, when they've realized they've gone they're farthest, when they've reached rock-bottom, they need something to let them reach the surface once more. To go back to being loved and accepted and needed; What all humans want in the end.

What people like that need is a last chance. To prove they're sorry, or just a plain pitiful person. If they did it right, they could go back to being loved, not in the completely same way, but still someway similar. However if they did it all wrong…well, then they would have to get accustomed to rock-bottom, to the pitiful life they've chosen.

Luke…he needed some growing up to do.

And he needed me, seeing as no one else would help.

_Later. I'll go to him later. Asch…Asch and Van's motives are the only ones I need to focus on now._ I told myself, and turned my attention back to the original, the old 'Luke'.

Yes, I loved Luke, but I very well loved the old Luke as well.

"…Why do you want my friendship so badly? I thought you had the replica." He answered with a question. I frowned. Asch was avoiding the question. For whatever reason, I'm not sure, he only danced around it with his answers. I couldn't tell if it was because I brought up bad memories, or if he secretly did want to be friends, it was all very confusing. His words and actions were so perplexing; I wasn't even sure how to react without realizing I was going too far.

I was crossing the thin ice blindfolded. And here I thought it couldn't get anymore dangerous. Asch knew how to keep people out.

He was good.

"Because I missed you. When I found out your 'memories' had been gone…" I trailed off. Was I going too far? He wasn't even facing me; I wouldn't be able to read the emotion in his eyes. I could've been cracking the ice, or I could've been quite fine, I didn't know. I was at my end, only able to rely on instinct, and a natural kind voice and words. I had only myself and my intuition to rely on, my analyzing abilities useless to me.

I was really put to the test here. Asch was good. Really good.

"That 'Luke' is gone. I'm…not at all like I was back then. Just give up." He scoffed, and turned his back to me fully. He really wanted me gone. Badly.

"No."

Then, he turned to me, his defense crumbling, his eyes wide and his eyebrows raised. I didn't care if I was stepping too far. I wanted emotion, acknowledgment; I wanted him to answer me now. I was tired of him stalling, of playing with me, saying he wanted to be friends, then deciding not to. He was frustrating, and hard to read now, and all I wanted was answers _now._

I'm only human. Even I reach my end.

"Excuse me?" He asked, slightly offended. Ah. He was cracking.

"I won't give up. Even if you aren't the 'Luke' I grew up with…I still missed you. I can grow to love 'Asch', too." I admitted, and turned to him, not sure of the look on my face. It seemed to surprise him however. Good. I wanted emotion from him. Anything was good.

Just as long as I got _something._

He frowned, the look of surprise slipping away, being replaced with his typical look of irritance. I was losing him.

"Well maybe I don't want to get close to you. Now if you excuse me." He huffed, and turned to leave. My heart panicked and I reached for his arm on instinct. He turned to me, angry.

"Did you miss me? At least answer me that!" I demanded. I could tell I was losing him, that the ice was cracking underneath me, that it was only a matter of time. I had messed up, and if I didn't get what I wanted now, I would never. This was the last chance. He didn't want to be friends with me, didn't even want to know me at all, and it was all too late.

But maybe it was because I was an optimist. I wanted him to at least acknowledge me. To at least realize I was there. I wanted him to know me not out of spite, and if not out of love, then at least out of detachment. A neutral recognition was good enough.

_But, for Lorelei's sake, don't hate me. Anything but that. _I pleaded to him, mentally.

I'm naïve. He wouldn't ever think of me like that again, would he?

It doesn't hurt to try though, right?

He examined my face again, I'm still not sure why. He frowned. What would he say? Would he dodge the question again? Would he at least grant me one straight-forward answer?

"…Yes. I did."

And relief flooded my heart. A shiver went through my bones, a feel of satisfaction resounding in my body. It was like a hunger was fed, and everything felt quite alright. I smiled on instinct, and let go of his arm.

I suppose I would have to be happy with this.

"…Thank you, Asch." I whispered, and walked past him, ready to leave, knowing he was sick of me. I got what I wanted, and I knew when I wasn't wanted. He would probably avoid me from now on, but at least I got my answer and my closure. I was content.

However, he wanted more. Asch…Asch was hard to read sometimes. Very hard.

"Wait."

I stopped, a chill going up my spine. I looked to him.

"Wh-What is it?"

I thought we were done here. I thought we had patched it all up. Sure neither of us had the happy ending, but there was nothing else that could be done. The story was finished, the goal achieved, the loose ends tied up. He didn't want to see me more than he had to, and I knew that he had missed me, but gave up nonetheless. The questions were answered and our middle ground was reached.

What else was there to settle, to talk about, to do?

"…Maybe, in another life, we could've continued being friends."

I felt my heart lift. My legs shivered. Asch…Was he…

Was Asch the Bloody considering?

I was sure I was dreaming. That dreams were trying to answer my questions, that I wasn't on the deck of the Tartarus with the real Asch, that I wasn't making us go through painful things.

No. I could smell the sea's salt in the air. This wasn't a dream. I could hear the machine working, the waves being pushed to the side. This wasn't a dream.

However, when Asch turned to look at me with a face of sadness, of a look of lost, I was sure I was dreaming just like Luke back in Yulia City.

I waited for something to happen, a few seconds rushing past, and then realized he was waiting for _me_ to respond. To say something, to do something, to make this moment not so awkward and open for him. He wanted me to look disappointed, or silently agree, or push forward. To at least do _something._

_Anything._

Asch was getting easy to read again. That was a relief.

I gulped. What could I say though? The moment was so open, so free for anything. I didn't have to be afraid of crossing the line, because there was no line. Anything was allowed, and now it was up to me. It was up to me how our relationship went. Depending on the words I chose, we could slowly go back to a quite acknowledgement, or we could become old friends, or maybe, if I was sadistic enough, we could go to being a grudging acceptance, which neither of us wanted.

Funny how the tables turned from me begging him to not hate me, to him letting me choose.

"…We could still be friends." I shrugged, seeing that as the most reasonable thing. I examined his face and his eyes. He was considering. This was it. Now it was all up to Asch. I had passed the task to him. We were depending on each other now on what to do, on where to take this. If we both had the same ideas, it could go right. If one of use gave up, or backed down, then we'd both be in disappointment. It was all a very delicate procedure of quiet agreement, of trying to figure out the other's intentions and wishes.

Now all the weight was on him, the stage-lights shining on him to see where we would go, on what we would do. He sighed, and relaxed his shoulders.

"…Maybe."

And he left it at that. I realized Asch didn't want to speak about this any longer. He didn't want to go through anything else. He was tired, his soul was worn out, his emotional strength used up. I could tell he had never gone through anything like this before. Never had any heart-to-heart talks. Never had to deal with conversations that made him guard himself so tremendously.

But it was okay now. The battle was over. The truce was made. I wouldn't hurt him any longer.

And as he walked back to me, I smiled and we walked side by side, back inside.

We had a lot to do now. We would walk through this together, this developing friendship. We would watch and nurture it. We weren't quite there yet, but we still walked side-by-side, a quiet acknowledgment, knowing we were still there, by the other's side. Where this would go, was up to us now. How far it would go, how long it was last, was all up to us. I looked to him, and he looked back. We stopped.

I smiled.

I could trust him. This friendship…he wouldn't give it up.

He had loved me back then, and had missed me afterwards. Just as I had for him.

We would be quite alright. It was…He was…and I was…No.

_Everything_ was okay now.

* * *

Well that's the end of it! Thank you for reading! :3

Ah…this has very bad grammar and I'm sorry for that. And Guy might seem OOC…sorry. D:

And when he says 'love' he means love for a friend. You can still read it as you like though. I don't mind. I just hope this story entertained you, as it's supposed to.

What happens to them down the road…well, that's up to you on what happens. If they become friends, or decide it's not for the better, is all up to you. This was only a story that is meant to entertain. I just hope it makes you think.

Anyway, thank you once again for reading! I hope you have a wonderful day! Ciao! x3

-Apple Fairy


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